Crafty Homeschool

Ella's been a busy little bee the last little while.  So we thought we'd share a couple of the projects she's been working on.

We've been learning about animals and birds and the things they need to live.  So we decided to make some bird feeders.   One for our house and one for Grandma's.  I splurged on some chocolate milk -all for the sake of learning of course  :)  Ella got out the paints and decorated the cartons.

I cut a 'door' in the side and made the holes for Ella to slide in a stick for a perch.

Apparently this took a lot of concentration.  Notice the tongue??   I got some bird seeds on grocery day.  Now we just need to find a place to hang it, one that we can see from the house but isn't easy for the cats to bother.  We want this to feed the birds not become a lunch counter for the cats.

Last year Santa gave Ella a sewing kit.  I must admit we haven't really done anything out of it yet.  She always seemed to ask at the worst time possible.  The other day Ella was determined to make a start.  She wanted to make the stuffed cat.  The kit is great, it comes in a cute little suitcase.  All the felt pieces are pre-cut for all the projects.  My only complaint is that the embroidery thread is complete crap.  I ended up tossing it all and getting out my DMC threads for Ella to choose from.

She was totally focused and determined to have it finished that night.  Ella did a great job (Momma helped a little to meet the time frame).

And here's the very proud new cat owner!

Homeschooled Children are Weird?

I think this is a great article that really answers the socialization question.  Instead of trying to defend against this question, we should embrace the fact that our homeschooled children are different (or weird).  I think most of us homeschool, at least partially, to ensure that our children don't turn out like most public school children -just another mindless cog that follows commands and doesn't think for themselves. 

Yes, My Grown Homeschooled Children Are Odd — And Yours Will Be Too!.

If the choice is for Ella to be assimilated into the herd mentality, a victim of over commercialization/s-xualization prevalent in public schools, and to surrender her individualization or to be peer-independent, free thinking, and a well rounded, loving person -I'm sure you can guess which I'll choose.

Any one who has met my Ella will tell you she's not 'normal'.  She will talk with anyone and carries on very intelligent conversations.  I am always being asked if she's in grade one (and not because she's tall).  Ella doesn't notice differences in people, not colour or mental ability.  Every one she meets is her friend.  She is loving and a creative thinker.  She is not a mindless cog just doing what she's told when she's told to do it (i.e., at the bell).  Ella loves to learn and explore.

Hugli's Adventure

Ella had another great home school outing yesterday.  She and Grandma met up with a bunch of our home school friends at Hugli's Blueberry Ranch in Pembroke.  I was still feeling miserable, so I did groceries instead  :(

The kids had so much fun.  There are a couple of mazes, including a large alphabet corn maze.  Ella's bunch got a little lost around the letter 'M'.  That was fine at the time but caused a little stress around 2am this morning.



They have a bit of a petting zoo.  Ella was quite taken with Valentine the goat.  There were sheep and alpaca too.  It's really great how the children can get up close and personal with the animals.

This impressive fellow (aka Mr. Hugli) made an appearance and fired off the pumpkin canon.  They are so great with the children.  Fun stories about a fin-less shark that needs to be fed pumpkins.

And then there is this.....

The giant pumpkin is eating someone!!!  At first they were going to use the pumpkin cannon to rescue the guy, but then they decided since only legs were left it was too late.
That last picture reminded me of one I found on the camera on the weekend. 


Colin had been taking some pictures and I guess got creative.

Bonnechere Caves

We had a homeschool trip on Monday.  We headed to Eganville and the Bonnechere Caves.  This was one of the last tours of the year because the caves flood over the winter and are pumped dry again in spring.   The caves are located along the Bonnechere river and there is a beautiful waterfall and rapids.

This time of year the bats are coming into the caves to hibernate.  Apparently, Ontario has 8 kinds of bats and the caves are home to all 8.  The bats must be sound sleepers, we had about 16 children and lots of flash photography and it didn't disturb them.

The caves aren't that claustrophobic.   There was room for 2 wide in most spots.  It's well-lit and has a hemlock walkway all the way through.  There are a number of stairs, so must keep that in mind.

The caves and property are so full of fossils, you almost can't not find a fossil!  We took our fossil along to get an expert opinion.  Colin thought it was a sponge.  But really it's a honeycomb coral.  Our tour guide said it was the best example of honeycomb coral he's ever seen.

We had a lovely day at the caves and a fun picnic lunch.  I always like getting out with the other homeschool moms so Ella can have around other children.  I get so fed-up with public school kids that have no idea how to deal with Ella and most of the times won't even speak with her.  And they are the ones considered well socialized!!

Homeschool Fun

We had another homeschool outing today. It was such gorgeous weather and the rain held off until we were finished. We were at Hugli's Blueberry Ranch in Pembroke. They had so much for the kids to see and do. There was the pirate maze and play structure. Ella had so much fun climbing and 'walking the plank' over to the big curly slide. As you can see, Lily decided to come with us for the day.

There was a hay maze for everyone to walk through and on. Ella was a little unsure going up, but Matt gave her a hand and she did great. We also saw a few animals. They had some goats and sheep that the kids were able to feed. There was also an alpaca and 2 lamas. The great big tom turkey (also his name) was very impressive, white and black feathers. They also had a miniature bull and horse.

I think the highlight of the morning was the ABC corn maze. It was very well marked and the kids did a great job finding our way through. They had to find all the letters of the alphabet and answer the questions. Bronte (age 6) did a fabulous job reading the questions, just needed a few promptings.

Then we hopped back on the wagon and they took us through the pumpkin patch and told the kids about how pumpkins grow. Ella surprised the man by telling him that pumpkins can be blue. He thought we meant a Hubbard squash, but corrected him that it was in fact a pumpkin. This picture you can see Ella's new sweater. Grandma did another great job.

Not Back to School Picnic

The new homeschool group I found in Pembroke had a "Not Back to School Picnic" on Tuesday. We first went to the local museum and the kids had a great time. Ella had fun in the school like her Grandpa Fletcher attended. She has such a look of concentration on her face :) When my Mom attended grade school, they had desks like on the far side of the room (if you can see them), with cast-iron grille work for supports. Mom's grade school was 3 stories with lots of rooms -if you ever see "Wind at My Back", a CBC television series, the school used in it was Mom's. In fact, a lot of Bowmanville was in that show.

After the museum was the picnic at the local Rotary park. I felt much better about some of the "uber" moms, their lunches were just as "junkie" as ours was. I at least have had a crazy couple weeks for my excuse :)

Ella had a grand time at the park. It had a giant "play yard" as she calls it. Everything went well, until Ella took a few years off my life. She was on the middle part of the slide (with a bunch of other kids), I hollered for her to get off and slide properly. Ella hopped off and in front of another girl. She gave Ella a bit of a push (more a hurry up than anything) and over Ella went, head first. Luckily there was lots of sand, and she caught her foot on the slide and landed on her side. I was so frightened. And so was she. She was shaking. After I realized Ella was fine, I started giving her grief for scaring me. Ella says "I won't scare you any more Mommy"


This is what the end of a great homeschool picnic looks like :)

They're Here!

Ella's school books arrived yesterday! I got the ones for 3-4 year olds and also the "kindergarten" age ones. I'm not sure how fast she will go through the early books. Her mind is like a sponge. It's almost scary how easily she learns things. They are from Christian Light Publishing. Unlike some of the other Conservative Christian/Mennonite curriculum I've looked at, CLP goes to grade 12.

I need to take back yesterday's rant :) My friend Niki pointed out that the HS conference has lots of workshop/lectures and kids would just be bouncing off the walls. I've decided to forgo the conference this year. I've got all the books I need for Ella and funds are a little tight right now. Maybe next year. I might feel safer leaving Ella with Grandma Isobel by next year. Then Grandma and I could go.

Saw the RNP today and giant surprise I have an infection. I'm now on ammoxicillin so hopefully we can get this cold undercontrol before I end up down at the hospital. It would be nice to have one winter without a hospital visit. Ella's coming home Friday, I'm giving the antibiotic time to start killing bacteria before she does. Feeling so much better today.

Homeschool Rant

The drugs have kicked in so I'm going to post one quick rant and then I'm going to bed.

I've been looking forward to going to the Rideau Valley Home Educator's Homeschool Conference ever since my friend Niki mentioned it. It's coming up next month so I thought I'd better get some more information, since it's also delivery day for the OVFC. Imagine my shock when I see that children under twelve are not welcome! At a homeschool conference!?! Now I will likely not be able to go. Colin will be cropping by then (fingers crossed) and I need Grandma to come with me to the conference (don't do crowds well alone). I have no one else to leave Ella with. In fact, I've NEVER left Ella with anyone other than Grandma Hattie. Now I don't know what to do :(